Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, said Sunday that this year’s elections “might be the most important in our lifetime.”
His statement comes just days after he re-registered as a Democrat in a move that his attorney, Lanny Davis, said was intended to distance himself from the Trump administration.
Both actions represent a significant shift in loyalty for a man who once said that he would “take a bullet” for the President.
Cohen pleaded guilty in August to eight criminal counts, including tax fraud, making false statements to a bank and two campaign finance violations – making an excessive campaign contribution and causing an unlawful corporate contribution – stemming from payments he made to keep two women who alleged previous affairs with Trump quiet during the 2016 campaign.
Trump has denied the claims.
Cohen had previously been registered as a Republican, and in June, he stepped down as deputy finance chairman for the Republican National Committee amid the criminal investigation into his business dealings.
Trump has been hammering home the importance of this year’s election as well, making the case for the GOP platform in rallies around the country.
In September, he told supporters at a rally in Billings, Montana, that if they don’t turn out to vote, it will be their “fault” if he gets impeached.
Those comments came after the release of a new book by Bob Woodward and the publication of an anonymous op-ed by a senior Trump administration official in The New York Times that painted a picture of an administration that distrusts the President and that at times has gone out of its way to thwart his agenda.
Some Democratic leaders, such as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, have tried to tamp down calls from within their party to impeach the President if they gain a majority in one of both houses of Congress in the upcoming election.
CNN’s Kate Sullivan contributed to this report.